Apparatus for producing heat insulating handles



Patented May 27, ,1947

* UNITED s-TATEs PATENT-1 orrlcs JamesF. Eckstein, Milwaukee, Wis, assignor to Cutler-Hammer, Inc., Milwaukee, Wis., a corporationof- Delaware a Continuation of application Serial No. 307,396,

December 4, 1939. This application filed Febwill hereinafter appear.

v cation, SerialgNo. 307,396, fiIedQby me iointlywith i Henry R. Marshall and Julius alen on an cember 4, 1939, forHeating:insulatinghandl lClaim. (-01.1842) paratus for producing heat insulating handles.

There has long been a great need for a soluif" tion of the problem of providingjasatisfactory Accordingly, a primary obiectiof which will withstand the heat of a bakingi'oven or the like without deleterious effects. 4

Another andmore specific object 'ofthe inven :my invention is to provide for production of insulating handles I for utensils subject to heat wherein the afo reinen- A anovel apparatus tion is to provide a novel apparatus for producing a one-piece, cold-molded handle of hand grip .v ,1 1 v insulating handle produced in 'accordanceQwlth length formed of non-charring heat insulating material with a. molded in passage extendinglcingitudinally therethrough to ';accommodat ea bolt --for securing th handleto a cookingutensil; v f

' Another object is to provide a novel appara v tus for coldlmolding handles of thecharacter aforementioned. M

1 Other objects and 2 This application is arcontlnuationioiappl,

est mate:mainta ned and amethod'ofan'd ap ar atus for producing the- The may be employed to produce a handle of the charthereto.;,

preferred form of one-piecevcoldmolded-hollow my invention; Asshown by the full size view in to r v 1 'yforproper gripping thereof by hand. The same 1 is provided with a pair of straight'approxinlately parallel fiat; sidesit and 12 and two opposed,

{sides '13 and 14 of convex'form in transverse across, section between the sides first. mentioned.

As illustrated iri,Fl'gs .yl'and 4; handle iii is somejhat wider. atltsiouter end l5 than at its inner and i2 toward eachotherbetween said outer nd'iinner ends. 'lfhe'same is provided at its in-' accompanying drawings-illustrate one form of handle produced in accordancewith my invenheat resisting and heat insulating handle ior -5--,tion-and the-preferred apparatus for cold moldutensils subject to heat, such as fryingpans. v ing-the same, Itis to be understood that the It has heretofore been proposed to interpose articleand the apparatus "herein disclosed arebetween a relatively long hollow wooden handle susceptible of modification in respect of certain and the utensil a relatively. short member to! details withoutdepai't 'lg from my invention as heat resisting and heat insulating materiaL but defined by. the appended claim; I

such an arrangement involvedthe use oian 'ex-* g In the drawings. Figure Us a top planview oi tra or added part, which increased the cost of the -P 00 d moldedheat resisting and heat handle, without avoiding the objection" to the -insulating handle produced in accordance with relative fragility of the wooden'portion' of the I my invention, said handle being adapted for at handle and the difi iculty of insuring a proper api5 7 tachment to a frying pan or the like. 7 pearance of the latter, if painted or enameled, Fig.2 is a view of one end of the handle shown under conditions involved in its use. s i in Fig; l, the noncircularity of the'reduced end It has also been proposed toiorm-utensil han portion of the. handle bein illustrated- Y dies of hot molded insulating material; thus pro- 3 s a ew f e ot r ve of t eha' e, vlding satisfactory heat insulating characteris :20 the two inner circles illustrating the tapered tics in a one-piece handle construction. "Such' t format the through pas age. an ithe outer circle 7 hot molded insulating material, ho ever,-lnvol e 1 illustrating the countersink or recess whichac-J a relatively higher cost of dies, material andlabor,-- O m Odates the enlar em t Q h P rtion of lacks the required degree ofheat resistivity, and a Securing bolt to be associated ther w Y is subjectto charring or carbonlzation, particu '25 ,Fig.,4.is a bottom planview of the handle. larly at the point of attachment of the handle- Fig; 515 a side-view 'oi thehandle. to the utensil or as-a whole when the utensil is jnFl 651s a vertical lon tu i l"" c i n. O i used as a baking pan in an oven-thus rapidly the line 6--6 of Fig. 1, full size, illustrating the reducing the strength andmarringthe appear- .1 form of the through passage, thev 'co'untersunlg' game of t e handle recessassociated therewithfand the'contour of "portions ofv the' upper and-lower surfaces of the ,handle. 1" i V -Figr'l is a vertical sectional viewnoi a cold 1 7 molding-dieset' irelatively simple form which vacte'r hereinfdisclosed; and v Fig.3, is" a' fr'agmentary sectional view of a frying pan, andillustrating the manner in which [such an insulating handle may be attached ieridjljli, duetotheslight inwardangle of sides 7 metal frying pan l9 in Fig. 8. In practice neck I! is provided with a flat surface 20 extending throughout at least a portion of its length for V cooperation with a corresponding fiat surfacefl (Fig. 8) formed in the socket I8, whereby rotahe Dan is posi-.

tion of the handle relatively to tively prevented.

Handle I is preferably provided on its upper convex surface l3 adjacent to the inner end thereof with an integral projection 22, the sub stantially vertical shoulder or surface 23 of which acts as an abutment or guard to prevent accidental contact of a users thumb with the adjacent portion of the metal pan (see Fig. 8). The convex surface I3 of the handle is also preferably provided with a centrally located group of adjacent ribs orridges 24 extending from the surface 23 to a point adjacent to the outer end l aforementioned. Said ribs 24 function to afford a better manual grip upon the'handle, and at the same time provide a pleasing and attractive appearance of the upper surface-of the latter.

Similarly the transversely convex lower surface H of said handle is provided with a pinrality of longitudinally spaced groups 25, 25 and 2l'of adjacent ribs or ridges extending across a portion of the width of said surface to assist in affording a good manual grip upon the handle,

and to provide a pleasing and attractive appear ance of the latter when the frying pan orthe like is hung in reversed relation upon a wall hook or nail when not in use. I

As best illustrated in Figs. 5 and 6 the upper and lower surfaces, I3 and 14- are preferably curved toward each otheradjacent to the outer end ii of the handle, as indicated at 28 and 29. The aforementioned lower surface is also preferably provided with a single relatively-small rib or ridge 30 which meets and forms a continuation of the vertical ribs 3| and 32 formed upon the aforementioned sides ll and I2. Said ribs 30, Mand -32 are substantially. alined with the aforementioned shoulder 23, and similarly act as abutments to assist in preventing accidental contact of the users fingers with the adjacent portion of the metal pan.

' I-Iandle I0 is provided with a molded in bolt passage 33 extending longitudinally therethrough from end to end thereof. Said passage is preferably of circular form in transverse cross section, and the same preferably is tapered slightly toward the inner end of the handle, asbest illustrated in Fig. 8. Such taper is likewise illustrated by the inner full line circle-and the next 4 handle in the assembled position thereof illustrated in Fig. 8. In practice rod 31 is provided above the head portion 36 thereof with a hook or loop portion 40 whereby the frying pan or the like may be suspended from the usual hook or nail when not in use.

The pan to which the handle is attached may be of any suitable cast metal, such as iron or aluminum (Fig. 8), or the pan may be formed of sheet metal, such as spun aluminum or the like, in which eventa formed metal socket is attached to the pan in any suitable manner, as

by welding or riveting, a metal nut being held captive in the socket for cooperation with the adjacent dotted line circle'in Fig. 2, and by the I two adjacent inner circles shown in full lines in Fig. 3. Said passage 333 preferably includes a relatively large substantially cylindrical countersink or recess 35 which is concentric with said nassage and opens to the outer end, l5 of the handle. I i

Recess 35 isadapted to accommodate an en- .largement or head portion 36 (Fig. 8) of a bolt 31 the shank of which penetrates said passage and has a threaded end 38 which takes into a tapped recess 39 of corres onding size provided at the inner endlof the aforementionedsocket '8. Upon tightening of bolt 31 the head portion engages the inner end wall of countersink 35 to insure full telescopic movement of neck l1 into socket l8, and to insure retention of the threaded end 38 of bolt 31.

Although I-have illustrated a handlehaving the preferred shape and ornamentation, it is tcrbe understood that the shape and ornamentation of certain portions thereof may be modifled, if desired. .Thlls the convexity of the surfaces l3 and I4 may be varied, or even eliminated; ribs like 24 may be provided upon both surfaces l3 and M; or ribs like 25, 26, 21' may be provided upon both of said surfaces, or said rib formations may be omitted; the only requirement being that said surfaces [3 and i4 are such as to provide for formation of the body of the handle by a straight-line molding operation.

As aforestated, to accomplish the results contemplated by me it' is necessary that the handle be composed of cold molded and heat indurated insulating material having the desired heat insulating and heat resisting (or ncn-charring) characteristics. I have disclosed in Fig. '7 an apparatus for producing such handles in a simple and expeditious manner. Thecold' molding die set illustrated in Fig. '7 comprises a stationary base.

orbed-plate consisting of the parts 4| and 42, a lower die member 43 which rests upon the part 42 during the molding operation; a movable die box 44 which telescopically surrounds the lower die member 43 and is spring-biased upwardly to a given position relatively to the latter as by means of a plurality of relatively strong coiled compression springs, two of which are shown at 45 and 46. r

The lower die member 43 has associated therewith, in slidable relationship thereto, an auxiliary die member 41 which is positively interlocked at 48 with die box 44 and adjustably interlocked with the lower die member 43 as by means of a bolt 49 having threaded engagement with member 43 under the bias of springs 45 and.

46. Any suitablezmeans (not shown) may be provided for'preventing a substantial degree of upward displacement of die box 44 from the position thereof illustrated u on, upward movement of die members 43 and 41 as an incident to,

the ejecting operation hereinafter described.

Die'box 44 thusoperates with die members 43 and 41 to provide a die cavity correspondingin length and transverse dimensions to the length and transverse dimensions 01' the handle it]. Die box 44 isformed at opposite longitudinal ends of the die cavity, as illustrated, to accommodate with a close fit at 52 the small end 530i, a hard,

ened steel'rod or plunger the slightly tapered portion 54 of which is adapted to form the major portion of the bolt passage in the molded handle I0. Said plunger has an enlarged portion a part 55 of which extends into the die cavity to form the aforementioned countersink or recess 35 and I With the aforedescribed parts positioned as. illustrated, the die cavity may have deposited therein a suitable charge of comminuted or granular cold moldable insulating material, such material being composed of an organic binder and a fibrous filler, Such charge may be deposited by hand to a level flush with the upper surface of the die box. In'practice I prefer to employ a shuttle type filling device of well known form (not shown) which automatically insures charging of the material to the level aforementioned.

Thereafter the upper die member 62 is moved downwardly by any suitable power-operated means (not shown), said die member initially entering telescopically into the die box 44 to a depth corresponding to that indicated by the line 63 in Fig. '7. Such movement of die member 62 relatively to die box 44 and die member 43 effects partial compression or compacting of the mate.. rial within the die cavity. Associated with die member, 62 are a plurality of abutment members, two of which are shown at 64 and 55. Thus upon continued downward movement of die member 62, members 64 and 55 will engage the upper surface of die box 44 whereby the latter is constrained to move downwardly jointly with the upper die member 62, against the bias of springs 45 and 46, during the remainder of the molding operation. Part 42 of the bed-plate has associated therewith a plurality of abutment members, two of which are shown at 66 and 51, whereby the degree of joint downward movement of the upper die member 62 and die box 44 relatively to the lower die member 43 i positively limited.

As aforeindicated, the lower die member 43 remains in the position thereof illustrated in full lines during the entire molding operation. However, merely for purposes of illustration, we have shown in dotted lines at 43 and 62* in Fig. 7 the relative positions of the lower and upper die members with respect to rod 54 when the.die members are in their final molding relationship, it being understood, of course, that in such relationship die member 52, die box 44 and rod 54 will gear 60 and rack 59. Although I have illustrated manually operable means for effecting movement of rod 54 into and out of the operative position die member 43. Upon withdrawal of said rod 53,

54, 55 from the moldingcavity in the manner just described themolded handle will be retained in the dotted line position illustrated, by frictional engagement thereof with theside and end walls ofthe cavity, and by thepositive interlocking engagement of the reduced end thereof with die member 41. I

With the die box 44 restrained against movement upwardly beyond theposition thereof illustrated by the aforementioned additional abutment or stop means (not shown), the lower die member 43 is moved upwardly to simultaneously contact the molded handle and the lower end of die member 41 by p'ower driven upward movement of a rod 68. Such movement of die member 43 is continued until the molding surface thereof is adjacent to or only slightly below the upper surface of die box 44. To facilitate removal of the molded handle from the .die members 43 and 41 without injury to or marring of the piece, I prefer to provide for additional upward movement of member 41, including a substantial degree of upward movement thereof relatively to member 43. Said means as shown may comprise g a rod or pin 69 which is freely slidable upwardly to a predetermined extent through a guide opening provided therefor in the parts 41 and 42 of the bed plate.

Rod 69 has a head 10 which is engageable with the lower surface of part 4| of the bed-plate to I has pivoted thereto at 12 a lever the short end 13 of which is positioned within notch H for driving engagement with the upper end wall of the latter. The long end 14 of said lever is adapted to underlie the lower end of the aforementioned bolt 49; the arrangement being such that during upward movement of rod 68 pin 69 moves upwardly therewith until the head 10 strikes the lower surface of said part 4|, whereupon the up end 14 of said lever engages the bolt 49 to drive the same and its associated die member 41 upwardly to a substantial degree relatively to die member 43, asindicated at 41 and at 43*, respectively, thus causing the molded handle to entirely clear the die member 43 and permitting ready manual removal of the molded handle from die member 41. The handles when'molded are subjected to the usual prolonged heat treatment for curing and hardening the same.

After removal of the molded handle from the die members, the latter are moved to or permitted to move to the full line positions thereof illustrated preparatory to reception of a charge of the molding material and a repetition of the aforedescribed molding operation.

a wise of said 'cavityjand feet iln'al relatively hi member, said upper v movable in the reverse direction Iclaim: In a machine for cold molding a relatively long insulating handle having a passage extending longitudinally therethrough, in Combination, a

, 8 oi'the molding' pressure, means for withdrawing said oore member fr means for thereafter efiecting a predetermined degree of upward movement completely normally stationary lower die-member. a mov 6 memberto'efiect ejection of the molded handle able die box surrounding said lower die member from said die box, an auxiliary die member assoand slidable withrespect thereto, said JdiebOiLw .ciated with said lower 'die member and adapted being normally biased upwardly to a predeter-':' to providea reduced neck portion at one end of mined positionrelatively. to 'saidlower die-vmemthe handle; and meansfor effecting upward bar to provide with the latter: a relatively long;1 movemen'tlo't said auxiliary die member relatively horizontal oavity for reception; of molding mas;

er .1 extending length;

engaged.- with the! oppo-' end walls otsaid box r die member initially-gtelescopi terial, a metal core mem site latter, an uppe molding material located within said cavity, said die box being thereafter movable jointly with saidupper die memberito a'predetermined degree relatively to said lower die member to efgh compression of said around and about said core die, member: being thereafter to eflect release 2 molding gmaterial for. support b'yijhq 'l 15 dies box to afpredet V -'ifile of this patent: and,

-to said lower die member to efiect ejectionof the h e m the latter.

y r JAMESF. ECKSTEIN. iREEERENCES CITED Th'effollowin g referenees are of record in the D sTArEs'ra'rEN'rs.

om said cavity, 1

of said lower die 

